Prevention is Working in Louisiana: Residents are experiencing lower rates of sexual violence, so the work must continue and grow!
Sexual violence, including forced sex, sexual harassment, and sexual coercion, has declined between 2023 and 2025 in Louisiana, according to the Louisiana Violence Experiences Survey (LaVEX). LaVEX is conducted by the Newcomb Institute at Tulane University and is the only comprehensive, population-level survey on violence in Louisiana and one of the few such studies in the United States. LaFASA is a proud partner in this survey.
LaVEX is an important resource for many reasons, including the range of behaviors it captures (including the spectrum of sexual violence, physical violence, harmful policing) and its analysis of the connections between violence, health disparities, and socioeconomic conditions. Statistics that use formal reports (such as law enforcement, Title IX and Clery Reports, and EEOC complaints) or rely on help-seeking by survivors (such as the number of survivors who sought services at sexual assault centers) are often higher in communities where there is robust outreach, a strong and trauma-informed response network, and survivors feel that making a report will make a difference in their lives and communities. In Louisiana, only 3% of women and 8% of men who experienced sexual violence in the past year filed an official report or complaint.
Rates have declined for several forms of sexual violence, which means the preventative work being done is making an impact, therefore we must continue and expand these efforts. Federal funding is the only dedicated prevention funding for sexual assault centers to do prevention work; LaFASA works closely with the Louisiana Department of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the six centers that receive this funding to implement robust, locally-responsive, and comprehensive programming. The state of Louisiana does not allocate any state funds for sexual violence prevention.
Sexual violence is more than a criminal justice issue. Though the only person to blame for sexual abuse, assault, or harassment is the person who committed it, there are social factors that can reduce the risk of experiencing or perpetrating sexual violence. LaVEX 2025 found that communities that experience discrimination or lack of access were more likely to report sexual violence in the past year, especially people with disabilities and lesbian, gay, and bisexual Louisianans. Louisiana residents who had difficulty affording basic needs in the past year were twice as likely to experience sexual violence in the past year. Those who were evicted in the past year were four times more likely to experience past-year sexual violence, and those who experienced homelessness in the past year were three times as likely. Louisiana’s prevention program is committed to addressing sexual violence as a community issue that is connected with other factors in people’s lives. In addition to building knowledge and skills related to sexual violence, healthy relationships, consent, communication, and boundaries, these programs work on the root causes of violence. For example, centers are working with community leaders to distribute hygiene products, improve the condition of parks and other community centers, create safer and more secure workplaces, and build financial skills.
The LaVEX report can be accessed here: https://www.vexdata.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/lavex-report-2025.pdf For more information about Louisiana’s sexual violence prevention program, please reach out to jessie@lafasa.org.
LaFASA News 